Chandler, a second-term councillor, has been awarded a two-year scholarship to study in Europe. Chandler, a registered nurse, will study sustainable health systems for her master’s degree. The Eramus Mundus Scholarship is fully funded through the European Commission, and has schools in Spain, Hungary, Lithuania and Italy.

Chandler’s resignation is effective Sept. 1. A by-election will be held in conjunction with the referendum on the blue bridge, so no extra costs are incurred, said Mayor Dean Fortin. That will likely be at the end of November.

Chandler said the decision to leave was difficult but the scholarship is a “once in a lifetime opportunity. It marries the two things I’m most passionate about - health and wellness and sustainability.”

Chandler’s husband Roy and their daughter Penelope-Rose will also go to Europe.

“As much as I regret leaving my term early, I also know Victoria is where I will return to reinvest the skills and knowledge I’ll gain with this experience. I’m comforted by that.”

Chandler said she may well return to political life on her return.

Read more: http://www.timescolonist.com/health/Victoria+councillor+Sonya+Chandler+resigns+study+Europe/3083640/story.html#ixzz0pG9LgCtA

Dear Victoria Residents,

It is with trepidation and appreciation that I am writing this letter today to inform you that I have tendered my resignation from Victoria City Council effective September 1^st 2010.

I have been privileged to be your City Councillor since 2005, championing issues related to heath, sustainability, food security and community engagement.  As a registered nurse and mother I have been committed to improving the health of our community, for ourselves but also for our children and grandchildren.  An opportunity to continue this work has presented itself in the form of a scholarship to do my Masters Degree in Sustainable Health Systems in the European Union.  The challenging part of this exciting opportunity is that the program requires a two year commitment that starts in early September 2010 and thereby requires an early end to my term. 

This decision has been a difficult one to make, but as I consider my future both professionally and personally, as well as my long term contributions to this community I believe this to be the right decision. The Erasmus Mundus Scholarship that I have been awarded is fully funded through the European Commission and will see our family spending time at Universities in Spain, Hungary, Italy and Lithuania.  This program is also unique from any I have been able to uncover here in Canada with the specific study areas that I have been looking for. 

As I write this letter I am feeling so thankful for the opportunity I have had to be on council, and am distressed by the prospect of stepping away from the role in a few short months. I am grateful for all that I have learned during my time here, and also for what I have been able to contribute in my two terms of office.  Some of the things that I am most proud of include the creation of our Department of Sustainability, a renewed municipal focus on public engagement, a governance review that has changed how City Hall does business, a council commitment to health promotion through housing and harm reduction and a greater understanding of what it means to be a family friendly, food secure community.  I have been honoured to be at the council table representing you, and have worked to give voice to those in our society that historically have been underrepresented such as youth, families, seniors and those living in poverty. 

As I look to the future for Victoria, I am comforted by the fact that as a team, I believe council is moving forward with a real sense of civic responsibility and a balanced approach to finding lasting solutions to some of the challenges our city faces.  I would like to say heart-felt thanks to all the City staff, from our top Directors, to our front line, who work tirelessly for the community; to my council members from whom I have learned so much and have truly enjoyed getting to know; and to the Mayor whose commitment to this community is steadfast and whose leadership is commendable.

But more than anything I want to thank the community members who entrusted me with this role. I thank you for the chance to have been a part of this city in such a vital way and for the privilege of representing you on Victoria City Council. 

Sincerely,

Sonya Chandler

Victoria City Councillor

ALL HAIL KALE — AND HERBS:

Philippe Lucas and Sonya Chandler gather chard, kale and herbs from the city’s demonstration garden outside Victoria City Hall yesterday.

Photograph by: Adrian Lam, Times Colonist

Harvest time began at Victoria City Hall yesterday with two councillors gathering the fruits of the earth from two small planters set in the sidewalk.

Councillors Philippe Lucas and Sonya Chandler cut armfuls of chard, kale and a variety of herbs, such as rosemary and thyme, from the two beds in front of the hall’s Pandora Avenue entrance. All of the harvest was to be donated to Our Place for use in its soup kitchen.

“It goes to show you can grow a substantial amount of food in a small space,” said Chandler, who helped found the Banfield Commons garden in Vic West.

Until about eight weeks ago, the two garden plots housed ornamental flowers. But in the spring, the two councillors won approval to grow food as a demonstration project dubbed the “First Steps Garden.”

Lucas, previously active with the Wark Street Commons garden in the Quadra-Hillside area, said the project demonstrates the ease of growing food in backyards or other small spaces, like allotment gardens.

It’s been estimated that Vancouver Island has about three days supply of food on hand for residents at any one time, he said. But decades ago, the Island supplied 80 per cent of its own food.

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

Victoria officials are wondering what to do with hundreds of kilometres of increasingly neglected boulevards.

There’s no shortage of ideas. Some people would like to see them used for vegetable gardens. Others would prefer to see benches or flowers, while still others would like to pave them over. But the city has neither the budget nor the policy to manage the requests.

By its own admission, the city does a poor job of maintaining its 300 kilometres of boulevards, which are increasingly turning into ratty little strips of neglected real estate.

The city stopped watering the boulevards in the late 1990s, and more recently, it’s stopped using pesticides to control weeds.

“We’ve got no water and we’ve got no pesticides. It’s hard to grow grass particularly with no water,” said David Speed, city parks general manager.

Yet even as maintenance has been reduced, costs have continued to rise.

The city spends more than $600,000 a year maintaining most of these strips of grass, which run alongside more than a third of Victoria’s properties.

The cost is largely offset by a boulevard tax paid by about 28 per cent of property owners who have boulevards in front of their properties. That maintenance — which costs $2.50 a square metre — can add up to anywhere between $30 and $575 a year.

Not surprisingly, residents have been opting out in droves, even though that’s not a particularly easy thing to do.

“Literally hundreds of blocks have opted out. It’s done on a block basis. It’s a particularly onerous process in that residents need to get two-thirds agreement on their block to opt out of the program,” said Speed.

Geographically, most of the boulevards in the tax program are in the older parts of the community. The city started building boulevards in 1907 and established the boulevard tax program to maintain them around the same time. The program’s undoing probably had its start in the 1950s, when, as new neighbourhoods were built, homeowners were simply expected to look after their boulevards.

“From what we can see, other than Oak Bay, there are no other municipalities that are engaged in the tax boulevard program. All other municipalities are leaving the maintenance of boulevards to their residents,” Speed said.

City parks staff are consulting with community associations and other groups and have posted an on-line questionnaire with the hope of making recommendations to council this fall about the boulevard taxation program and boulevard maintenance.

Options on the table include everything from dropping it all together to expanding it or setting improvement policies.

“We’re getting requests for anything from vegetable gardening [and] fruit trees to paving over boulevards to putting fixed structures on boulevards,” Speed said. “At this point, we’re largely just turning people away because we don’t have the capacity to manage those requests and we don’t have a policy in place.”

Coun. Philippe Lucas says the city should be able to increase the options for people tending to boulevards as long as they’re not putting anyone at risk.

But Rob Woodland, city director of legislative and regulatory services, said the city needs to protect itself by setting clear guidelines for what’s permitted and what’s not. “The person who trips and falls isn’t going to sue the homeowner because it isn’t his property. They’re going to sue the city,” Woodland said.

bcleverley@tc.canwest.com

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

Victoria council wants more information on harm-reduction initiatives before taking a stand on the distribution of free crackpipes in the city.

Coun. Philippe Lucas had asked council to endorse the distribution of crackpipe kits to reduce the spread of hepatitis C, from which he suffers. If Victoria council supported the distribution, the Vancouver Island Health Authority would provide funding for the kits.

But several of Lucas’s council colleagues expressed concern yesterday about taking any one initiative in isolation — potentially derailing other efforts, such as finding a fixed needle-exchange site.

Instead, councillors resolved to meet with VIHA representatives within the month for a comprehensive analysis of harm-reduction issues.

“What we need is some urgency to look at the whole picture,” said Coun. Lynn Hunter. “If we hive one part off, saying this is the most urgent, then we’re going to be more inclined to delay discussion on the larger issue.”

It’s common for people who smoke crack cocaine to have sores, cuts and burns on their lips. Crackpipes are often makeshift — fashioned from cans or glass tubes with sharp edges — and shared among users. That means there’s potential for infections such as HIV and hepatitis C to be shared as well, transmitted from blood on pipes through open cuts and sores.

Advocates of crackpipe distribution argue the risk of the disease spreading can be minimized if pipes aren’t shared.

Coun. Sonya Chandler argued against waiting to make the decision, adding council can support the pipe distribution now and still address wider issues. “There’s people out there smoking crack out of light bulbs, and they’re injuring themselves and they’re contracting hep C.”

Lucas, who contracted hepatitis C through tainted blood he received during a medical procedure in Ontario in 1982, hopes council will support crackpipe distribution after the meeting with VIHA officials.

But Mayor Dean Fortin doubted anything would happen that quickly. “My expectation for the meeting isn’t to come out with a decision like that right away. My understanding is for council to get a better understanding of what systems and models are out there, what exists and what VIHA is looking forward to doing,” Fortin said

Victoria’s Cormorant Street needle exchange was forced to close a year ago in the wake of neighbours’ complaints that users loitered outside the building, leaving behind dirty syringes, blood and human waste.

For 12 months, intravenous drug users in Victoria have had to rely on the mobile needle exchange or picking up clean needles when they visit a clinic.

Pressure for a more comprehensive needle-exchange system has ramped up as a group calling itself Harm Reduction Victoria opened an informal needle exchange near Our Place on Pandora Avenue.

While the city endorses the concept of harm reduction, those efforts should work for all members of the community, including users, children, downtown residents and workers, Fortin said.

bcleverley@tc.canwest.com

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

A woman smokes crack on Pandora Avenue. Crack pipes and other drug-use equipment should be distributed in a safe manner to prevent the spread of infectious diseases, a letter-writer says.

Photograph by: Debra Brash, Times Colonist, Times Colonist

I support Coun. Philippe Lucas’ call for the distribution of crack pipes. Hepatitis C and tuberculosis are among the serious health complications resulting from shared pipe use. The distribution of safer drug-use equipment in no way encourages illicit drug use; rather, it prevents the spread of infectious diseases and therefore demonstrates to people who use illicit drugs that we are a compassionate society and believe in the right of all people to essential public health-care services.

VIHA should be basing its policies on the abundant public-health research available, rather than on misinformed police officers. Contrary to police advice that the number of pipes on the street appears to be meeting demand, the limited crack pipe distribution currently occurring has created a volatile situation in which pipes are a commodity on the street.

Disease prevention, the opportunity for treatment and harm reduction are all encompassed by the distribution of safer drug-use equipment. Widespread international public-health evidence has shown that prohibition and enforcement cause the lion’s share of harm.

Heather Hobbs Victoria

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

People are talking these days about things no one usually talks about, and they are doing it very publicly.

Jody Paterson wrote a brilliant plea for sanity in our attitude toward sex trade workers and their murderers (May 22). Philippe Lucas told fellow Victoria city councillors they should support the distribution of crack pipes (May 23). And for some time, many voices have demanded the Vancouver Island Health Authority reinstate the fixed site needle exchanges they shut down one year ago.

We can discuss drug use and the global research overwhelmingly supporting harm reduction measures such as fixed site syringe exchanges and crack pipe distribution.

We will find enforcement has never been a solution and advising abstinence in matters of drugs and sex is a ludicrous waste of time. Prevention and harm reduction are the productive avenues of discourse. Refuse those discussions for the most marginalized people in our communities and there will be other conversations commanding our attention.

When police cannot enforce the problem away, when health services hemorrhage money to patch up ruined bodies, when corporate agendas subtract more workers’ rights to maximize profits and create more homeless and addicted, then we will have to talk. Let’s do it now, even if the kids are listening.

Derek Peach

Central Saanich

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

Controversial idea: kits intended to reduce spread of hepatitis C

By Bill Cleverley, Times ColonistMay 23, 2009

Shared pipes pose a health risk.

Photograph by: Flles, Canwest News Service

A Victoria councillor is pushing for the distribution of free crack pipes in the city.

Philippe Lucas is telling fellow councillors that crack pipe kits are meant to reduce the spread of hepatitis C, a condition with which he’s afflicted. “I hate the idea of anyone at all having to deal with the hep C that I’ve dealt with when the spread is entirely preventable in terms of drug use.”

Councillors will debate Lucas’s suggestion next month.

Lucas contracted hepatitis C through tainted blood he received during a medical procedure in Ontario in 1982.

It’s common for people who smoke crack cocaine to have sores, cuts and burns on their lips. Crack pipes are often makeshift — fashioned from cans or glass tubes with sharp edges — and shared among users. That means there’s potential for infections such as HIV and hepatitis C to be shared as well, transmitted from blood on pipes through open cuts and sores.

Advocates of crack-pipe distribution argue the risk of the disease spreading can be minimized if pipes aren’t shared.

If Victoria council supports the distribution, the Vancouver Island Health Authority will provide funding for the kits, said VIHA spokeswoman Suzanne Germain.

But on Thursday, Victoria councillors rejected a request by AIDS Vancouver Island for funding for a similar distribution scheme. Councillors approved only $4,500 of a $10,000 grant request from AIDS Vancouver Island for a program in which volunteers collect used syringes. The balance of the grant would have been used for crack-pipe distribution. City staff said the program lacked broad support, citing advice from Victoria police that the number of pipes on the street appears to be meeting demand.

Coun. Chris Coleman said he’d support the idea of free crack pipes as long as it was part of an overall four-pillar strategy of prevention, treatment, enforcement and harm reduction. “But I always get a little concerned when we take one part of a harm-reduction strategy and not the others.”

Two years ago, a health-authority worker distributed crack pipe kits — including a pipe, mouthpiece, push stick and draw screens — in Nanaimo, but stopped after complaints from that city’s mayor. At the time, VIHA chief executive officer Howard Waldner said the authority could have done a better job of communicating the project’s goals.

Esquimalt Mayor Barb Desjardins has suggested her municipality to look for ways to restrict the sale of glass tubes, steel wool by the chunk and baking soda, all items used in the smoking of crack.

Police spokesman Sgt. Grant Hamilton said police would prefer more emphasis on education and treatment. “But we understand that it’s more of a health discussion.”

Lucas doesn’t buy the argument that distributing needles or pipe kits encourages drug abuse. “People don’t decide to take up injection-drug use because suddenly there’s a needle any more than people decide to take up smoking cigarettes because there’s an ashtray on the table.”

bcleverley@tc.canwest.com

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

Multicultural Society seeks permanent licence for its downtown centre

By Bill Cleverley, Times ColonistMay 10, 2009

Victoria will hold a public hearing into the Victoria Multicultural Society’s bid for a liquor licence for its downtown event centre, but councillors are wary of the prospect of adding another 250 licensed seats in the core.

Liquor is legally served at the Victoria Event Centre at 1415 Broad St. more than 150 times a year under special-event liquor licences. The centre operates as a venue for events such as gallery showings, non-profit fundraisers, all-ages dances and theatre, music, comedy and dance performances.

The society wants an ongoing liquor licence to cut down on costs and the red tape. But the city doesn’t want the centre to turn into a pub.

“I don’t want to find us in court trying to prove that the events they are having every single night do not constitute a special event, and them arguing it is a special event, [saying] we have paintings on the wall or we have a performance by a local singer,” Coun. Geoff Young said.

The society argues administering special-events licences and ensuring renters comply with the rules can eat up to 40 per cent of the administrators’ time and costs about $10,000 a year.

But with 46,000 licensed seats in the downtown and the attendant problems of drunkenness, noise, fights and public urination, both city staff and Victoria police don’t want to add to their problems.

A staff report notes there are 2,266 licensed seats within a two-block radius of the event centre and at least seven buildings within a 100-metre radius that have residential units.

Staff are recommending that a couple of conditions be attached if the licence is granted, including: restricting the hours of service to 5 p.m. to midnight Sunday to Wednesday and 5 p.m. to 1 a.m. Thursday, Friday and Saturday.

It’s also being recommended that a covenant be placed on the property so that the liquor licence can only operate in conjunction with scheduled events such as performances or gallery shows, said Rob Woodland, director of administrative services for the city.

“So it couldn’t simply be run as a bar, seven days a week,” he said.

“If we can get those conditions put on this licence, we feel comfortable recommending it.”

Young said he wouldn’t be comfortable endorsing the licence without a covenant. “I would prefer some kind of a numerical limit. If it’s a special event, it can’t be more than 75 times a year or twice a week,” he said.

Coun. Philippe Lucas noted many events held at the centre are non-alcoholic, adding that the organization has supported a number of causes.

“I think it is fair to say that this is a much greater contributor to the social and the cultural fabric of our downtown core than the average pub,” he said. “I’m not suggesting that a lot of pubs don’t host a lot of live bands or events, but the mandate here is clearly different than what we would see in a normal pub.”

bcleverley@tc.canwest.com

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist

The Downtown Victoria Business Association, launching its second, five-year funding bid, received enthusiastic support from several Victoria councillors Thursday.

“In a lot of ways we take for granted what the DVBA is able to do for us,” said Coun. Sonya Chandler.

DVBA general manager Ken Kelly asked city council to set in motion the process so that funding for the organization will continue through 2014.

The funding is subject to a counter petition process in which affected business owners can vote against it.

The DVBA is funded by a special tax on downtown businesses which this year raised about $862,000.

Under the budget presented that would increase 2.5 per cent to $883,633 in 2010 and is projected to increase to $975,365 by 2014.

When it was created in 2005, the DVBA levy was set at 80 cents per $1,000 assessment for businesses and 40 cents per $1,000 assessment for hotels. The levy has progressively dropped to 60 cents per $1,000 for businesses and 30 cents per $1,000 for hotels, Kelly said.

Over the past five years the organization has chalked up a number of successes including its Green Teams, whose members clean streets and remove graffiti — removing some 5,000 graffiti tags in the past year.

DVBA also partnered with the Victoria Police Department raising some $50,000 for the ConAir program which sends fugitives with non-returnable warrants back to the province in which they are wanted and the retail COP (Cameras On Patrol) program which allows surveillance cameras to be linked so photos of suspected criminals can be shared.

The DVBA also sponsored the Christmas Tree light up in Centennial Square; the Corridor of Lights program to shed more light on under lit streets and popular promotions such as the parking meter fairies which top up expired meters giving motorists extra time.

Coun. Pam Madoff noted it wasn’t that long ago that a lot of downtown businesses weren’t happy with the DVBA.

Indeed, in 2001 the DVBA was forced to restructure after the business community voted against its operating levy.

Since, the organization has reached out to almost every interest in the downtown and that speaks to its success.

“I just want to add my personal thanks for the tremendous work that you and your board have done,” she said.

Coun. Philippe Lucas agreed.

“Needless to say … you guys have blown away everybody’s expectations. It’s hard to think of any organization in the city that gets a bigger bang for the buck,” Lucas said.

© Copyright (c) The Victoria Times Colonist